Blazing Caravans
by ChevalierAirumel
Summary: What happens when the gods of old decide they've had enough of the Shinigami vs. Arrancar? They send them off on the Oregon trail! Can the two sides get along long enough to make this voyage of epic proportions? Random pairings may ensue.
1. Annoyance With the World

**Blazing Caravans**

Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, nor the gods, save for the one without a name.

Note: I got bored waiting for my sister to work on Bleached, so here's something to pass the time! I hope you like it! This isn't my first with Oregon Trail madness, I wrote one for Fruits Basket a few years ago. -Airi

* * *

The war between Soul Society and Aizen's force was well into its third day of turmoil. Ever since the turncoat shinigami had unleashed his forces on the town of Karakura combat and chaos had reigned both in the sky and on the ground. Neither side had given up and oddly, neither had taken too many casualties. If the human population was awake and capable of seeing the warriors on either side of the battle they would have been overwhelmed by the sheer ferocity each side fought with. Dawn was breaking, but no one noticed due to the shinigamis' spelled protection barrier that created an endless day.

"So, they're at it still?" asked a glowing muscular male form far above the battles in the upper levels of the atmosphere, "I thought maybe this time they'd have stopped."

"Humans, even in death… they still retain such violent ways…" remarked another glowing figure.

"Some of us here don't really see what's the problem with this. I personally have fought in a battle that raged much longer," a third form appeared in a flash of light.

The second figure, a female sighed, "Not all of us could find the same will to fight, Tyr. And this isn't anything like your Ragnarok."

Tyr scoffed, "Of course it's not! They don't stop to come back to life, not that they can, but you see my point."The second figure opened her mouth to say something again.

"Enough you two. Let the humans be." Commanded the first, his aura glowing stronger as the sun became more apparent in the horizon.

"But that's all we do!" moaned the female, "We watch them advance and destroy, besides these aren't exactly humans anymore… rejects from the afterlife is more like it…" her voice trailed off. "Don't you miss the old days when we could still contact them and make our presence known? Or do you need a few more millenniums before you'll realize that you miss it, Ra?"

The golden one was silent for a moment, "What do you want to do?" He asked, knowing his companion had something up her sleeve, except she wasn't wearing any sleeves.

She smirked, "Oh, nothing too extraordinary… just a game."

"What kind of game?" asked Tyr, suddenly more intrigued with this than the battle below.

"Remember, not too long ago, on the other side of the world, during 'westward expansion'?"

Both of her companions nodded and interested looks came across their faces as they exchanged ideas. Suddenly they vanished from their high observation point in the sky.

--

Hueco Mundo also rang out with the sounds of combat. Ichigo and Ulquiorra, unaware that much time had passed at all were still fighting each other in a mad frenzy. Orihime watched from a short distance, too scared to get closer, but afraid of not being there if Ichigo needed her. Her shield was up just in case; neither one of the fighters seemed too concerned about the status of the building in which they were fighting. Uluqiorra was about to slice at Ichigo when they both froze in mid-air. A yellow light engulfed the whole room. "H-hey, Innoue? Did you do that?" asked Ichigo, still able to speak although stuck in mid-fall.

Orihime tried to shake her head no, but found she too was paralyzed.

--

Back in Karakura town, both of the armies were also experiencing the same thing. Between the confused looks on the faces of some and the profanities swarming out of the mouths of others, it was clear that neither side had anticipated such an interruption. The yellow light had appeared suddenly and frozen the air in which both the black and the white armies were now stuck.

"Mortals!" Boomed a deep male voice, all eyes quickly found the bright burst of light that now addressed them.

"We tire of this meaningless, endless warfare." Another light appeared and spoke to them, this one was a dimmer green light with a female voice.

"W-who are you?" barked Soi-Fon, the second captain of the black shinigami army; she was stuck mid back flip over her opponent's head.

A third light, a warm golden one, appeared shining with much glamour, but less intensity than the first. "Tch. How dare you address us like that? Don't you know to whom you speak?"

"Uh, no. She asked because she didn't." A man dressed in white with long brown hair retorted with a roll of his eyes.

"We are, or were, gods of your world, although not this domain, at one point in time," the brightest one spoke. "However, that is not important right now."

"What is important," stated the green one, "is that we wish to change the circumstances. Observe." A sound came from the light like someone snapping their fingers. Karakura town as well as Hueco Mundo vanished from view as did the motion restraints. The shinigami and arrancar alike found themselves falling into a black abyss and passing out.

--

"Seems like we missed a few," was the first thing everyone heard as they awoke to find themselves and the three lights in a large, wooden building.

"Huh? Where am I?" asked Grimmjow sitting up. The blue haired espada's last memory was of passing out after Nnoitra had attacked him. Looking around he saw that he wasn't alone; everyone from Hueco Mundo and the Karakura battlefield surrounded him.

"Welcome, to a new dimension," spoke the triumphantly glowing light. "Instead of letting you fools run about and fight your war your way, we've decided on a different plan of battle. This," the light hovered over to a window out which a rural summer scene stood, "is the United States of America." He gave a few moments for the words to sink in.

"However, as you might have figured, it's not the real one, nor is it your own time period. The year here is 1847. Your tas-" the green light was interrupted.

"Why mess in our battle, what purpose does it serve you?" shouted a red haired shinigami.

The green light ignored the outburst and continued, "Your task is to make it from here, Independence, Missouri, all the way to Oregon by using the technology of the time period."

The bright light took over at this point, "All rules of the living world also apply including gravity, fatigue, illness, death, etcetera."

"You mean we can die here?" inquired the black haired fraccion, Apache.

"You can die in your own world, no?" asked the green, "We said we were changing the playing field and the circumstances of your battle, not the rules to life itself."

"At least give us more of an explanation as to what we should be expecting, beautiful green light," Shunsui, the eighth shinigami captain stated, earning him a glare from his lieutenant, Nanao.

The green light flared a brighter hue for a few moments before going on. "You will be divided into…" she took a moment to count and calculate "nine groups of five. Each group will receive a wagon, but it's up to you what to take with you."

"What's at the end? What incentive do we have to participate?" asked a white garbed teenage boy, who was not on anyone's side but his own.

"Must there be a purpose for everything, Quincy?" asked the lesser gold light sardonically, "If you don't participate you'll be stuck in the black abyss forever."

"And if we die during this 'game' of yours?"

"Death is a mystery, is it not?"

Ishida scowled. "So, you've ensured we won't decline your offer."

"Pretty much, unless you're more mental that we calculated," noted the green.

The Quincy was about to ask more questions, but was cut off abruptly, "Alright, let's skip these non-stop questions and get things started!" Another snap and another falling sensation overtook the group as they plunged once again into the black abyss.

* * *

Well, how was it? Good? Want more? Suggestions? Tell me!


	2. Wardrobe Changes

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* * *

**

Blazing Caravans

Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach or two of the gods. Just the green one.

Note: And... we're off to a slow start. It might take awhile before they actually get on the road, but do remember that when preparing for a 6 to 10 month trip you've gotta pack A LOT OF STUFF.

Wagon groups were determined by the random integer generator on my TI-83 because I'm that much of a stats geek. -Airi

* * *

When she opened her eyes, Lilinette wondered if they had moved at all. The room looked exactly the same as the last one, the same wooden floor was beneath them, the same wooden walls surrounded them, and the same ceiling was overhead. The only differences were that the window was gone and in its place stood a large mirror in front of a few wooden clothing chests, reflecting the group in the room. It was then she, as well as everyone else noticed the guys were all gone.

"Kurosaki?" called Orihime, just to make sure this wasn't some kind of illusion.

"He's not here," the green light appeared with a sudden flash, "Nor are the others. Don't worry, they're in another room." She hovered around the room a bit, observing the startled and confused looks on everyone's faces. Some ranged from a bored expression to sheer terror. One in particular, was sobbing in a corner. "Hey, what's wrong?" the light asked the small child with green hair and a skull mask.

"Bwahhh!! Scary light talks!" Nel screamed in her raspy lisp.

The light flared with a flash of anger, "This won't do… she's far too young for this…" she muttered. Another snap was heard and Nel suddenly grew older, back to her former espada form. "Ah, that's better," remarked the light as the crying stopped. She continued around the room looking at everyone. She stopped for a moment at Yachiru, but decided it unnecessary to change her; the girl seemed intelligent enough. As she returned to her starting position in front of Lilinette she came to another change she needed to make. "One more change before we get to the important stuff," with a quick snap and a bright light all of the arrancars holes disappeared and their mask fragments vanished. The four of them looked in the mirror in a mixture of shock and horror.

"Hey! What'd you do that for?" yelled Apache indignantly.

The light ignored her and flew over to the clothes chests, opening them with more snaps. "Here are clothes enough for all of you. You must put these on if you don't want to be stuck in the abyss forever, besides, I don't understand how some of you can dress the way you are now," with that snide remark the green light winked out leaving the girls to figure out what to do next.

--

The guys had also gotten a similar lecture from the other two lights, but the arrancar were even less pleased in this group when they suddenly lost their identification and became more human. Grimmjow and several others reached for their weapons only to find that they too were missing. "What the hell was that for?" he remarked, clearly pissed off at this new predicament.

If an orb of light could have rolled its eyes, the lesser light would have. "This is a different battle, not against each other, but against the world. We can't have you fighting amongst yourselves with that kind of weaponry, unless you'd rather all spend eternity in the abyss."

Several murmurs of "but still…" were heard amongst the crowd; the shinigami had just noticed that they too were weaponless.

The brighter golden light flared intensely for a brief moment, "Stop bickering! Here are your new outfits. You have until we return to be adequately dressed. Anyone who fails to comply will be the newest resident of the abyss. The two lights flashed out, giving no time for protests.

All was tensely silent in the room until Wonderweiss, the youngest arrancar, wandered forward to the piles of clothing sets the lights had left in heaps on the floor. He reached out slowly as if he thought the pile contained something dangerous and pulled a set towards himself. There was a piece of paper attached to it and he stared at it as if to read it. Everyone in the room remain motionless as they watched the young blonde boy try to comprehend what it said. Finally, someone broke the silence,

"What do you have there, Wonderweiss?" Gin asked with a smile as he approached.

Wonderweiss shrank back from Gin, not wanting to share his treasure.

"It's okay, I just want to look at it."

"Wonderweiss, let Gin see what you have," commanded Tosen.

The blonde boy complied and handed Gin the package of clothes.

"Well…?" asked Grimmjow, not enjoying this in the least.

"It's a name tag; I guess they designated specific sets for each of us, this one is Aizen's." He handed it back to Wonderweiss, "Go give this to Aizen-sama, okay?" he gently encouraged the boy.

--

Back in the girls' room, most were still struggling with the petticoats. "What I don't get is how they expect us to move in these, I mean we're going on a trip and something tells me we won't be flash stepping, not that much movement is possible in this…" complained Kiyone as her sister, Isane, helped her with her outfit.

"But, think on the bright side, Kiyone-san!" said Orihime cheerfully; "These dresses are so cute! You agree with me, don't you Rukia?"

The black haired shinigami nodded.

Kiyone sighed; no matter how she looked at this… tent she'd been forced into it still looked just as impractical as it was ugly to her. However was her sister managing to not be distressed by this garment, she'd never know.

The arrancar women also weren't so sure about these uniforms. "Why would anyone EVER want to wear so much?" whined Lilinette; she was used to running around Las Noches in what anyone else would have considered scandalous.

"I bet Stark will think you're extra cute in it!" remarked Neilel, as she admired herself in the mirror, sure it was a bit impractical, but she'd manage.

At that remark Lilinette's face turned slightly red. "Y-you think so?" Maybe this wouldn't be as bad as she had originally thought.

"Psh, like he'd ever be awake enough to notice her," muttered Apache, she'd only put on her own dress after a quick glance from Halibel that clearly stated 'do it or die'. However, the espada had remained silent as she had put on her own.

--

The men, in accordance with the gods' threat, had all put on their outfits with minimal grumbling. They had all been amazed at how well the outfits fit, especially for Komamura and Yammy; their sizes weren't exactly standard. A sudden double flash of light made them all aware of the arrival of the two gods. The lights hovered about for a moment, clearly making sure that everyone had complied with their commands. "Good. We see that no one is in violation. Now then, you are all ready to start!" announced the brighter one. A snap that everyone was getting a little too used to sounded and soon darkness took the room.

--

"Nngh," Kiyone regained consciousness to find herself in a smaller room; still wooden, but this one was furnished lightly; as if the inhabitants were about to move out. It was quite dim in this room; a small window revealed a just rising sun making its way into the sky. She looked down and saw that she was still dressed in the horrible tent of fabric. Then she noticed there were others in the room. On her right were Momo, Ranjiku, and was that Gin? She sat up and looked harder in the dim light; yes, that was the former third captain; he had his hand in Matsumoto's hair gently holding onto it like a child with his favorite stuffed animal. So, was this to be her group? Kiyone's mind wandered, flashing back through the earlier events; hadn't one of the lights mentioned something about five people in a group? If so, who was their fifth? The sandy blonde girl turned her head and looked to her left. "Kiahhhh!!" she screamed waking everyone up.

"Huh, Kiyone-chan? Is that you?" asked Matsumoto groggily. The busty redish haired shinigami sat up quickly. "Ow," she moaned, "Something's caught in my hair…" she turned to find out how to detach hair from whatever had caught it.

"Hiya Ranjiku!" Gin greeted her with a smile as he too sat up.

Matsumoto's face twisted into a glare of unholy rage. In one swift moment she smacked him across the face and yanked her hair out of his hand. That jerk, why was he in her life once more? Although she didn't want to admit it, those western clothes made him look… refined.

"Kiyone, why did you scream?" asked Momo, sitting up and rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

The younger shinigami didn't reply and latched herself onto Momo's arm as if to hide from something. It was only when the fifth member of the group sat up did the other four realize that Kiyone had been entirely justified in her scream.

"Ah, Ulquiorra, you're here too?" asked Gin, amused.

* * *

Thanks to all of you who reviewed last chapter! It means a lot to me! So, stay with me here and I'll do my best to get this story moving. Next chapter I'll introduce a few more of the groups, not sure if I'll get through all. I wish to let each one get equal time, but I'm not sure how well that'll happen thanks to the randomness of the groups... oh well, time will tell! -Airi


	3. How Will This Ever Work?

**Blazing Caravans**

Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, just the green goddess.

Note: Yay! It seems people actually like this story! I'm so happy! Thanks to everyone who has review or added this story to one of thier lists! Your support means a ton to me.

So, who's up for more calculator induced madness? -Airi

* * *

Dawn's fingers of light reached into the three windows and stretched across the floor to another group of five unconscious figures. As the sun touched the scars on his face, Shuei awoke. "What? Sun-up already? My report is not-" he stopped as soon as he saw his arm in front of his face clad in a starched white shirt. Memories of the previous day came flooding back to him. He looked around the room, noting the sparse handmade furniture and simple design. He stood up and walked over to a chair in the corner. The black haired lieutenant marveled at how well it had been made and walked over to the window, the room he was in was on the second level of a wooden house on a main street. Outside several wagons were parked, he imagined that one of them would be his and his companions, speaking of which, who exactly were they? Shuei realized he hadn't remembered to look, but now it wasn't entirely necessary; one of them had woken up.

"Yo! Shuei! We've got a problem, or more of two," Renji Abarai, the red haired lieutenant of 6th division approached him from behind.

"Who's yelling so loud?! I'll cut your tongue out, wimp!" A voice, unfamiliar to the 9th lieutenant yelled.

"Nnoitra-sama?" a groggy female voice asked.

"How's anyone supposed to get a decent amount of sleep with the lot of you yelling?" muttered a third voice, nonchalantly.

Nnoitra stood up and reached for his weapon, to realize it wasn't there. He glared at the last of the group to be awoken. "And just who the hell are you?"

The man in question removed his straw farmer hat that had been resting over his eyes, "That's not a very nice way to great someone you know?"

This remark earned him a deep growl from the fifth espada.

"The name is Kyoraku Shunsui, captain of the eighth squad," he said after a sigh. He sat up and put the farmer's hat on his head. Taking in the surrounding room, he noticed the last member of the group. "Hello there, beautiful! What's your name?" he winced as if expecting a blow from his non-present Nanao-chan.

The final member, Apache, Halibel's fraccion, scowled at the shinigami captain, wanting nothing more than to be back in Las Noches. At least she wasn't the only arrancar there…

--

However, for another arrancar, that was not the case…

"Heh, you're almost as big as I am!" exclaimed Yammy, as he stood eye to eye with seventh division's captain; Komamura. Unlike most of the other espada, the 10th was not having too much trouble dealing with teaming up with the shinigami; yet. One of them in the room clearly hated his guts and the feeling was an under exaggeration if anything. Another being in the room also shared that hatred, but this one was more justified. Chad, Ichigo's friend, had once been fatally wounded in their battle, or that would have been the case if Orihime hadn't stepped in. Chad clutched his right shoulder as if remembering that incident.

"Ukitake, what should we do about this?" asked a male monotone that somehow managed to sound quite displeased.

"I'm afraid there's not much we can do, Byakuya. We're not in any situation to be calling the shots, not with those three lights giving orders. But, on the bright side, we seem to be fortunate; this arrancar doesn't seem to have much of a problem with us.

Byakuya was about to reply when a green light exploded in the room. "Good morning, everyone!" said the green goddess in a cheerful tone. "Your wagons are parked outside your homes and the supplies you'll need… well, you've got to buy them!" she announced in a sing song voice.

The head of the Kuchiki clan noted that when, 'if' wasn't in his dictionary, he got his powers back, he'd kill the green light first.

"But in order to get your supplies, you need money! And to get money you must register your party at town hall! Okay? Got it? Great! Good luck!" Another blast of green light signaled her departure.

--

If there was a terrible joke of a wagon party, this was it.

Isane, the lieutenant of 4th division had awoken to find the unmistakable face of the former fifth captain next to her. In an attempt not to scream she had quickly covered her mouth with her arm and ran for the windows. She hadn't gotten far before she tripped over yet another face from her nightmares; Grimmjow. Her landing had only awoken him a little, but when she saw who she had landed in front of she could no longer hold in her scream. Needless to say; everyone got a rude awakening.

Now, after the announcement from the green light, things were only starting to sink it. Ichigo, the only member she hadn't stumbled over in her plight, was at a total loss for words as well. Here stood four people he hardly knew, and all of them had either tried to or hadn't gotten the chance to kill him yet.

Grimmjow, he had already fought with, and barely won, but he had assumed the sixth espada to be dead after Nnoitra's cheap attack.

Aizen, well, the leader of the army that had kidnapped Orihime was definitely on his list of villains needing to be dealt with.

Mayuri, the third of the dangerous, he had only heard the stories from Ishida and the other shinigami about what this madman was capable of. He wasn't entirely sure how he recognized the scientist; not only had Ichigo never seen much of this one, but Mayuri wasn't wearing his freaky clown makeup.

Isane, by far the least threatening, had once tried to kill him along with a few of the other lieutenants at Rukia's near-execution. It was clear to him that she was just as confused as he was.

Even Aizen seemed temporarily out of his usual know-it-all confidence. Only Mayuri seemed to have a grip on the moment; but that was due to his total lack of sanity. "Well then, it sounds like we need to head on over to town hall." He walked over to the door, "If you don't come we can't go, you idiots!" Everyone followed him out the door, but none were exactly following his lead; the walk to Town Hall became a leg race between the two captains and Ichigo. Grimmjow and Isane just kept up with a respective distance; neither one of them wanted to be caught in this mess more than they already were.

--

"Aww… look Kenny, there's a line…" moaned Yachiru, the pink haired lieutenant of 11th division as she leaned forward on her favorite perch; Kenpachi's shoulder.

"It's okay, Yachiru, we can wait," Rukia glanced upwards at her superior with a smile.

"It's not like we can do much else," noted a glum voice.

"Captain Hitsugaya and Miss Kuchiki are right," said another voice.

"So, Chojiro, any thoughts on this at the moment?" Kenpachi addressed the first lieutenant.

"I'm afraid this won't be as exciting as you're thinking it will be, the only thing we'll be fighting will be the forces of nature," the white haired lieutenant replied.

"Figures."

"Cheer up Kenny! I see Itchy!" Yachiro pointed at the front of Town Hall where sure enough the familiar orange haired substitute shinigami emerged. Anger and frustration were apparent on his face. He was soon followed by the rest of his group, they were all arguing about something and as they got closer it became more audible.

"If being with the four of you wasn't already bad enough, you went and made yourself leader?" shouted Ichigo at Mayuri.

"Hmph, show some respect. I'm the oldest and since the rest of you couldn't figure out who you wanted to be leader I pulled the seniority rule. Don't tell me that in your world they don't have that!" Mayuri defended his actions.

Ichigo grumbled something that was lost as they walked by Kenpachi's group without a so much as glancing in their direction.

"Poor Isane, having to put up with those guys," said Chojiro softly.

"Now that is what I call funny," laughed Kenpachi when the other group was out of earshot.

* * *

Thanks for reading! Please review or comment!


	4. Choose Your Leader

**Blazing Caravans**

Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach.

Note: Sorry, this chapter was almost ready on Friday... I take weekends off for the record. No, Sunday evening doesn't count as "weekend for me". And if I'm slow at updating, I apoligize; I'm in college. This is my free time I use to write this in! But that means I'm more apt to work on it. -Airi

* * *

"And the leader of your group will be who?" asked an elderly man behind a counter.

"Hold on a moment," said a tall green haired female as she turned to her group, "Is everyone alright with me being the leader? Or is there someone more suited for the job?"

"I d-don't have a p-problem with it, Miss N-Neliel," spoke a shorter black haired shinigami, quite visibly afraid of the former espada.

She smiled at him kindly and the timid 7th seat of 4th squad would have run away in terror if Ikkaku hadn't been holding him in place by the sleeve of his shirt. "Works for me," said the 3rd seat of 11th squad, not too please with this situation, but he knew it could have been much worse.

"I don't think we have much of a choice, none of us are exactly leader material in my book for this situation, so go ahead" the quincy adjusted his glasses; he was very glad that the lights hadn't made him give them up.

"What about you, Nemu-chan?" Neliel asked the silent lieutenant of 12th division.

"As you wish, Neliel-sama," the black haired girl responded like a robot. If anyone looked out of place in their current outfit, it was her. Nemu's expressionless face and perfect posture just made her look like a very expensive doll.

Neliel turned back to the man behind the counter, "I'm the leader, my name is Neliel," she proceeded to spell it out for him.

"Alright and what is your profession?" the man asked.

"Profession?"

"As in job."

"Yo, Neliel." Ikkaku called to his leader.

"What?" She turned to see the bald one pointing at a sign with a list of professions. As she read the sign she tried to fit herself in each profession. Doctor, banker, teacher, saddlemaker, carpenter, farmer, blacksmith, merchant, none of them seemed to fit her just right.

"Hey, are you going to tell me or just stand there all day?" asked the old man impatiently.

"She's a merchant," stated Ikkaku firmly.

The old man looked Neilel over quickly and muttered something under his breath before scribbling down more info on the registration form. "Right then, here you are." He passed a small pouch of money to Neilel across the counter.

"Thank you," she gave a quick bow as she took the money.

"You're welcome. I wish you luck on your journey."

The group thanked the old man and left for the stores.

--

At another counter in Town Hall a different group was running into similar problems.

"But, Innoue-san, I don't believe putting Halibel in charge of the group was the best decision."

"Let it go, Nanao, we voted, and we've been beaten two to three," the lieutenant of 7th squad, Iba, shared the 8th lieutenant's view of the situation he was in.

Yumichika was love struck by the female espada, now that she was dressed in the old fashioned clothing which he had personally deemed beautiful. Halibel had flipped the collar of her blouse up as far as it would go, but it hardly covered her neck. The 5th seat of 11th squad had been the first to suggest she lead, and when they had voted, Orihime had gone to the dark side as Nanao mentally called it. She now wondered if the girl hadn't damaged her head sometime during her stay in Las Noches.

"And your profession?" asked the young woman behind the counter. Something about her dark brown hair and glasses was familiar, but Nanao couldn't quite put her finger on it.

"Banker," Halibel gave a one word response, accepted the money and walked out not really caring if anyone was following her.

Nanao sighed and hoped that her new leader would at least be responsible with that money, unlike a certain captain she knew.

"Nanao-san! C'mon! We can't leave without you!" Orihime called tugging on her new friend's arm with much eagerness.

Nanao smiled a bit before coming back to reality; she'd been lost in one of her secret day dreams about her taicho.

--

"Your leader and profession, please?" asked the old man to the next group to reach the window.

"Restu Unohana, doctor," the fourth captain said with a polite smile on her face. There was really no question about who would be the leader of this group; Unohana easily outranked the others in age. Soi-Fon and Tosen were roughly around the same age, and to avoid all arguments between the two Unohana had simply taken the lead of the group with her motherly ways. After taking the money and the small medicine cabinet from the man she turned back to her group.

"U-wahh?" asked the youngest member of her group; Wonderwice, pointing at the medicine cabinet.

"This? It's got medicine and things to make you feel better if you get sick," Unohana explained gently to the arrancar. But as she attempted to show him what was inside he shrank back behind Tosen.

Soi-Fon and Izuru sighed inwardly; neither of them wanted anything to do with the ex-captain or the arrancar that were suddenly in their group. The third lieutenant shifted uncomfortably in his new clothing; the white shirt and brown breeches felt too tight fitting in comparison to his hakama and gi. He looked over silently at the second captain; she was really cute, now that he thought about it, although the sun-bonnet was definitely something she hated, as was apparent by the way she was always messing with it; it added something. Maybe, he thought, it was that it made her look less threatening that she usually did. Yeah, that was it! By just a change of clothes, Soul Society's fiercest warrior had been transformed into something, well, cute.

"Ready, everyone? Let's go to the stores!" Unohana led the way out of town hall.

--

"Four then, we don't have enough to get anymore," Six people stood outside of a large ranch.

"Wouldn't a hand cart be more efficient?" asked a tall, pink haired man.

"What do you mean by that, Szayel-sama?" Lilinette asked.

"Well, assuming the terrain to be similar as to what surrounds this city, then pulling a hand cart would not only be less expensive, but since the ground is relatively flat and assuming the friction to be…" Las Noches's head of research rattled on in physics terms that only a physics major could understand.

Lilinette closed her eyes and tried to block out the nerd's rambling, having to be around the eighth espada was enough by itself. She felt a headache coming on until a comforting hand found her shoulder. Glancing upwards, her eyes met the one person she's give her life for in an instant, even if he didn't seem to care too much.

"Where do you suggest we get such a contraption, eighth espada?" Stark's bored voice cut through Szayel's speech. He paused, putting a hand up to his face and resting a finger on the thin frames of his replaced glasses. Since the pink espada's glasses were his mask they had vanished with everyone else's, but his vision didn't improve. His current pair was way less than practical as he thought, small round pieces of glass framed with thin, hand crafted wire was all that allowed him any clarity now.

"Exactly," stated Stark, "Didn't think you saw one either."

"Are we all in agreement now?" asked the oldest member of the group; Yamamoto, the general commander of the shinigami.

Stark shrugged a response, Lilinette nodded, and Szayel decided that he should drop the topic.

"Sentaro, your decision?" Yamamoto addressed the only other shinigami in the group.

"Huh?! Yes! I'm with you on this!" the third seat of 13th division shouted in panic, not used to being asked his opinions by a superior.

And with that, Yamamoto turned to the very patient rancher and handed him enough money for four oxen.

--

This is a nightmare, a nightmare, and soon I'll wake up… Kiyone repeated inside her head over and over as she and her group climbed up the stairs to Town Hall. No one was really leading this odd group. Gin at one point had looked like he might assume command until he caught a murderous glance from Matsumoto. The silver haired ex-captain looked over his shoulder again at his childhood friend; she'd been glaring at the back of his head again but quickly looked away as he glanced back. Momo and Kiyone were up front walking nervously and Ulquiorra trailed behind silently.

The group soon passed through the set of tall solid oak doors of the largest building in town.

"Wow, there are a lot of people here, huh?" Gin remarked assessing the crowd.

"The line's this way, Kiyone-chan," Momo pointed, talking to only the other girl.

After waiting a short while in line they were directed over to the counter behind which a young woman sat behind. Gin directed his attention to her, his creepy smile became more intense.

"Uh, hello, welcome to Town Hall," said the lady behind the counter; Gin's smile was clearly disturbing her. "I need to know the members of your group as well as the leader and his or her occupation."

"Members, right," Gin spelled out everyone's name perfectly, "Now who should be the leader? By Ranjiku's glare, I guess I'm not qualified."

"Got that right," anger of unknown proportions surged through the reddish haired lieutenant's voice.

"But, I'm disqualifying you as well. A good leader can't hold a grudge against one of its members," Gin's remark came in a casual tone as the smile slipped a bit from his face.

"Then who do you recommend be the leader?" asked Ranjiku in disgust, "Ulquiorra?"

"No, Ulquiorra here is better at following orders than giving them, isn't that right?"

The fourth espada's cold and uncaring gaze fell upon his comrade.

"Ehehehe," Gin laughed nervously, "Anyways, I think little Kiyone-chan here has about the most qualifications."

"WHAT?" Kiyone's green eyes grew large, she hadn't expected this and wasn't sure she wanted it, "Why not Lieutenant Hinamori?"

Gin's smile returned to full force as he answered, "If you recall, she also has a grudge against me, but I guess you do too, but not quite to that magnitude."

"But, still…"

"As much as I don't want to say it, that idiot is right, you'd be the least bias of all of us, Kiyone-chan."

Kiyone looked over to Momo as if for help. "You'll do fine!" she put on a smile encouraging the younger girl.

The sandy blonde shinigami turned to the woman behind the desk who was now intently reading a hardcover book. However she looked up as the young shinigami approached. "I-I'm the leader."

"And your job…?" the dark brown haired lady behind the desk raised an eyebrow over the rim of her glasses.

"She's a farmer!" Exclaimed Gin, who'd read the sign in the few moments it's taken the rest of the group to motivate Kiyone.

The clerk turned her gaze, which turned into an icy glare at Gin, "Are we sure you aren't the leader?"

"Absolutely."

"Somehow that doesn't reassure me, but it's not my job to investigate such matters," she looked back to Kiyone, "Don't let him push you around, hear me?" She then handed the younger girl her money.

"Y-yeah!" The third seat of 13th division tried to sound confident, but she was so confused, why was Gin being so friendly? And did this clerk have a grudge against him or something?

"Don't worry about her, we'll take extra care that he won't case her any trouble!" exclaimed Momo.

"Trust me, I know just how treacherous this creep can be," Matsumoto agreed, her tone as cold as an arctic winter.

The clerk again raised an eyebrow, this time as if to question Matsumoto's experience, but the group was already walking out the door. She shuddered glancing at the ex-captain's back. Sighing, she turned her attention back to her book.

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Thanks for reading!! Please review or comment! Thanks and see you next time!


	5. Shopping Disasters

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Blazing Caravans

Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, just one character of this whole thing is mine and that's Xylene.

Note: Lots of thanks to NocturnalFerri for beta-ing. I did take your suggestion about the supplies at the end! That was a good point! -Airi

* * *

What had been a peaceful morning at the General Store was suddenly shattered when an outraged Espada flung the door in off its hinges sending it flying into the store counter. "Be careful, Nnoi-san," chided Shunsui Kyoraku gently. "You could hurt someone that way."

"I don't give a f-" the fifth Espada shouted, but was cut off when the cashier pushed the door off the counter and let it slam to the floor.

"Next time, open the door like everyone else, please," the cashier said with restrained anger in her voice.

"Aren't you a little young to be running a store?" asked Shuei, staring at the short girl behind the counter. She stared back with large brown eyes that peeked out from underneath a mop of brown hair. "Are you wearing a wig?" he asked, puzzled.

"Hmph, wanna make somethin' of it, punk?" She glared over the counter, her good mood obviously spoiled. "Anyhow. What can I get ya?"

Shunsui spoke up. "We need supplies for the long road ahead of us. I don't suppose you could give us some suggestions?" the captain asked gently with a warm smile, also thinking that something wasn't quite right with the girl.

Renji and Apache wandered off to explore the store. They found a corner of shelves filled from floor to ceiling with devices they'd never seen before. "What do you suppose this thing is?" asked the red haired Shinigami. He picked up a metal contraption with a handle that spun around on the top.

"Don't ask me!" shouted Apache, angered that the Shinigami had even addressed her in the first place.

"It's a coffee grinder!" cheerfully explained another store clerk. She was a bit taller than the cashier and had long purple hair that clashed with her green eyes. Both Shinigami and Arrancar gave the newcomer a blank stare, both wondering about her hair; it too looked quite fake. "You know, put the beans in this part, turn the handle and volia! Out comes coffee grinds!" explained the girl, making many a large gesture.

"What's coffee?" asked Renji, totally clueless.

"Agah?" The shopkeeper's mouth dropped open in shock. "You don't know what coffee is?"

Apache sighed and walked over to the counter to stand with Nnoitra, unable to stand anymore of the red haired idiot's antics. She observed silently as Shunsui, their leader, came to an agreement with the cashier over what to buy and was now paying for it.

"Take this to the back lot so they know what to get you," said the brown haired girl as she handed the eighth captain a slip of paper. He thanked her with a tip of his hat and walked out. It took Renji, who had been preoocupied with the foreign gadets, a couple seconds to realize he had been left behind and ran to catch up."

---

The third wagon, lead by Shunsui's old friend, Jushiro Ukitake, was managing quite well. Yammy, although an Espada, felt no anger or grudge against the three Shinigami and one human he was stuck with. The group had been among the first to get their wagon to the store and hadn't needed any help with lifting the heavier things; Chad, Yammy, and Komamura had no problem lifting the crates of supplies into the wagon. The only one with a problem with the situation was Byakuya, but he had been silent, knowing he had no say in the matter.

"Heh, good thing you guys are so strong. Saved us a crap load of work!" remarked a shop employee with a huge grin that displayed a full set of teeth. His reddish hair looked out of place to Ukitake but, he dismissed the thought as he made sure that they had everything on the list. Yammy laughed along with the shop employee as he hefted the last of the boxes into the wagon.

Ukitake made one last look over his shoulder as they left the shop, wondering who the two girls were. They didn't seem all that odd to him, just… familiar? Was that it?

---

After the flying door incident, the shopkeepers inside felt like they could handle anything. However, they weren't prepared for a certain green goddess that knew that fact quite well. With a bright flash, she appeared sitting on the counter of the store in human form.

"Gah!!!" Both of the girls jumped back in surprise. "Xyelene! Warn us before you do that!" Shouted the green eyed employee.

Xyelene, the green goddess, sighed and adjusted her position on the counter. "There's no time. You have no idea what's coming."

As if on cue, in walked trouble through the door-less entryway; the members of the Kurotsuchi Wagon, as Mayuri had named them, had arrived.

"You there, girl!" The captain of 12th division pointed at the brown haired girl behind the counter. "We need supplies, specifically…" He rattled off a list of things.

"Wait a second you! How the heck am I supposed to remember all of that?!" The girl leaned halfway across the counter, looking as if she was going to attack the blue haired man.

Xyelene glanced at the cashier and raised a green eyebrow. The message was received as the cashier merely scowled and began to write up a list.

"Kurosaki, I believe you should just calm down and let Kurotsuchi deal with this." An eerily calm sounding Aizen entered, his hair still slicked back into his 'evil' hairdo. At the sound of his voice, the cashier dropped her pen and the other girl dropped the bag of flour she had been stocking the shelves with.

WOMPF! The bag broke open slightly at the top sending a cloud of white powder up like a geyser. The purple haired girl coughed then laughed nervously. "Oops, sorry about that!"

"Do you need help?" Aizen was definitely back in "good mode" even if his hair wasn't. He held out a hand to the girl on the floor who was hurriedly dusting herself off. She froze when she saw his hand extended towards her. A brief flicker of something sinister registered on her face but was quickly replaced with an insecure smile.

"N-no, that's okay! Thanks anyways!" She picked up the bag, set it on the shelf, and ran off to the back room in a panic. The other shopkeeper watched her go looking as if she'd been deserted. She glanced over to the green goddess who was still sitting on the counter. A smirk was on her face. This clearly amused her.

"What are you smirking at?" asked Mayuri rudely.

She arched an eyebrow at him and remained silent.

"I asked you a question, girl, and I will have a response."

The other eyebrow arched up and a green light engulfed her form as Xyelene stood up. At her full height, she didn't make Mayuri's shoulder. Her bright green hair that trailed down in an unkempt mess to her ankles blew in a non-existent wind. "Such insolence, mortal, do you know to whom you speak?" Her voice eminated as if from the very Earth itself.

Mayuri took a step back.

"What's going on?" yelled Grimmjow as he rushed into the store. Until now he'd decided to stay outside with Isane because neither of them could take much more of Aizen's act, Mayuri's arrogance or Ichigo's continual outbursts about everything.

"You know what?" said Xyelene, losing the last scrap of patience she had at the moment. She knew that she lost control of her temper way faster than most gods, but then again, she wasn't the goddess of destruction for nothing. These people were just as bad as the last group of humans she'd dealt with and that was over three millenniums ago. Such primitive people they had been, she'd thought that maybe, just maybe, the human race would have improved their manners in that time. "I'm sick of your bickering!" She snapped her fingers and suddenly they were outside a small forest, looking at a rocky field. "You can start your journey now! I don't care what happens to the lot of you. Until you learn to get along I'm not talking to you five. Work together, for crying out loud, instead of against each other!" With that angry outburst, she left Ichigo, Grimmjow, Mayuri, Aizen, and Isane without a clue as to where they were.

"What the hell did you say to her, Shinigami?!" spat Grimmjow.

Mayuri was still in shock; he just stared at where the green goddess had been mere moments before.

"Hey, look, the wagon's here!" exclaimed Ichigo, pointing. The group walked over to see that it was their wagon and oxen, but no supplies were inside.

Isane let out a moan wondering how far it would be until the next town. She didn't want to starve out here already.

"Looks like we'd better find a store or something soon, if we don't want to starve to death," noted Aizen also displeased with their current situation.

"What the heck are we waiting for? Let's get this over with so I can go back to kicking your ass, Ichigo," Grimmjow jumped into the wagon.

"I already defeated you, Grimmjow!" yelled Ichigo, not pleased at all by the prospect of fighting the sixth Espada again. Ichigo leapt for the wagon but, missed as it started to move away. He managed to catch his balance and keep himself from face planting into the ground. "Hey! Who did that?!"

"I did. You'll just weigh down the wagon with your inferiority," said Mayuri, who had taken the reins. "Speaking of which, get out of the wagon you blue haired failure," he shouted over his shoulder at Grimmjow.

"Speak for yourself!" Grimmjow yelled back, indignant. The Espada lunged forward in an attempt to grab the reins from the mad scientist. Just as his hands brushed the reins, a well timed kick from the twelfth captain sent him flying out the side. Grimmjow's cat-like reflexes were the only thing that saved him from getting crushed by the heavy wagon wheels as Mayuri drove on as if nothing had happened.

Isane and Aizen walked in silence alongside the wagon, but with a two meter gap between them. The lieutenant of the fourth squad prayed that wherever this 'Oregon' was it wasn't too far away; she didn't know how long this pseudo peace would hold.

"Wait, do we even know where we're going?" asked Ichigo, suddenly.

"OF COURSE I KNOW!" yelled Mayuri. "Oregon is north west of here." Ichigo and the others silently wondered if he even knew what direction that was but, time would tell as none of them really felt like arguing with him at the moment. They'd gotten into enough trouble thanks to him already.

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Thanks for reading! It might be awhile before the next one comes up, but that'll be my fault... sorry everyone, I've been busy. -Airi


	6. Some Starts Are Better Than Others

**Blazing Caravans**

Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, just the green goddess is mine.

Note: No, I'm not dead! I just needed a break, but now I'm back and well... I'd like to say things will be more frequent, however, I have finals next week and then I'm on break... ah, who knows what'll happen!

Once again, I thank the awesome NocturnalFerri for beta-ing!

Hope this was worth the wait!!!-Airi

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"It's getting dark," observed Isane as the group walked alongside the wagon across a field by the edge of a forest. The trees cast their long shadows upon the party and beyond in a feeble attempt to reach the horizon.

"We can see that," stated Grimmjow, irritated. "Thanks for pointing out the obvious!" They'd been walking all day without rest or food thanks to Mayuri's argument with a goddess. It was too early to give up; even though the sun was going down, it was still the first day of traveling.

Isane sighed inwardly, ignoring the Espada's retort. She didn't understand what exactly was going on, but then again, no one else really did either. Tired, hungry, and feeling all alone, she was having trouble keeping her wits about her.

--

The sun sank further into the ground as did the remnants of everyone's patience.

"Strange, I thought we'd have found a town by now," muttered Mayuri, looking to the horizon. The dark of the night seemed to spread out to the ends of the earth.

"We're lost, great…" muttered Ichigo, keeping his eyes downcast at the ground as he trudged on. He was still trying to decipher the events of the day and was half lost in thought.

"Just where the hell have you been leading us, you crazy clown?" shouted Grimmjow. The blue haired Espada looked as if he was about to throw himself at the 12th captain who was seated comfortably in the driver's seat of the wagon as he had been all day.

A strong grip on his shoulder prevented his attack. "We should stop for the night, we need the rest," said Sosuke Aizen calmly, as if he were addressing his lieutenant.

But, Mayuri, of course, had his own agenda and was intent on keeping it. "Nonsense, there is no need to stop. After all, this is just some prank being pulled on us by some stupid goddess. Peh, I'll show her that I'm not so easily disposed of!"

"Mayuri, we should stop for the evening," suggested Aizen, reasonably. "The oxen and every-"

"Did I not make myself clear? We are not stopping!" Mayuri gave the reins an extra slap to urge the oxen on.

--

Darkness had taken the world long ago, or so it now seemed to Ichigo. He hadn't come to any conclusion about the situation; no quick solution seemed present and Urahara wasn't around for advice. For the moment all he could do was put all of his focus into placing one foot in front of the other. He was lagging a bit behind the wagon now but was still the closest one to it compared to the others. Mayuri was ten feet away and falling further behind at every moment. Aizen was a few feet behind Ichigo, silently admiring how resilient the oxen were pulling a load all day like they had. Behind the traitor captain, Grimmjow trotted slowly, silently longing for his adjuca form so he could be on all fours; maybe he wouldn't be so tired then. At least he wasn't as bad off as that silver haired Shinigami. He glanced back to see her straggling behind.

Isane's thoughts were as blank as Ichigo's; she just had to put one foot in front of the other and keep going. But as she glanced down, the hard ground began to look so comforting; the grass poking out of the ground looked so soft; as did the various other plants. In fact, even the thistle bushes looked so inviting, like little clouds. Even the rocks looked nice enough for a pillow. Thinking only thoughts of sleep she felt herself getting dizzy. "No," she thought desperately. "I can't give in; Captain Kurosutchi will leave me behind." But her body and oh-so-comfortable looking ground were putting up a ferocious fight with her. Eventually the ground won out and she felt herself falling, but passed out before her weary body met the earth.

---

The sun was just beginning to race the trees for the sky when Hitsugaya woke up the next morning. He, along with Kenpachi, Yachiru, Rukia, and Chojiro, had spent the night in their starting room without much event. Yesterday, they'd bought the supplies they deemed necessary, loaded their wagon, and decided to wait for sunrise to start out. Chojiro had assumed the driver's seat, Kenpachi declared that he'd rather walk, and Yachiru took up her usual perch on her captain's shoulder. "We're all set; everything's all accounted for," said Rukia as she climbed out of the wagon after double checking their supplies. This team was determined to survive.

"Chojiro, after we exit the town, take the trail to your right," said Hitsugaya as he looked up from the map he held in his hands. It was irritating how almost nothing on the map was labeled and was left mostly unfinished. Only key landmarks, rivers and some boundary lines seemed to be labeled. He now understood why the store keepers had given him odd looks when he'd asked for a map.

"Yes, Hitsugaya-taicho," said Chojiro. The elderly man started the wagon's team of six oxen with a gentle touch of the reins.

---

Neliel and her odd group had departed shortly before dawn at the Quincy's urging. "It makes more sense to travel with the sun," he had reasoned. "After all, the risk of self-injury increases in the dark." The group had easily seen his reason and quietly, as not to disturb the residents, left the town while still rubbing the sleep out of their eyes.

It was now mid-morning; the sun still had not quite reached the top of the trees that lined their pathway.

"Think we'll run into any of the other groups?" asked Ikkaku, strolling alongside the front of the wagon.

"Where'd that question come from?" asked Ishida as he glanced down from the driver's seat.

"You're all being too quiet. I thought I'd start a conversation," said the third seat of 11th squad, rolling his eyes. They'd been walking in silence since they'd started. At first he assumed that this was the way people not from 11th division started their days, but as the hours passed, the bald man found the lack of noise increasingly irritating.

Ishida took a moment to adjust his glasses before answering. "Well, I guess…we might run into them. I don't see why not, assuming we're all in the same place."

"Hmm…"

"But knowing who's in some of the other wagons, do we really want to run into them?" said Ishida. He turned his attention back to driving the slow moving wagon.

"What do you mean by that?" asked Hanataro, suddenly interested enough to partake in the conversation. The shortest member of the group walked on the other side of the wagon with Neliel. Still unsure of her intentions, Hanataro was doing all he could to pretend she wasn't there.

"If we ran into Aizen, things would become problematic," Nemu stated breaking her own silence and surprising everyone.

"A-Aizen?!" Hanataro stopped in his tracks and shook with fear.

Neliel hung back to stand with Hanataro. "Don't worry, we won't let him get any of us," she said with a bright smile.

The Shinigami stared up at the former Espada and asked, "B-but, aren't you on his side?"

Neliel's olive eyes became suddenly serious. "No, not anymore. Anyways, we're all unarmed; I doubt he could do much without his kido and sword."

These words only slightly reassured Hanataro, but it was enough to calm him down.

"Yo! You guys are going to get left behind!" called Ikkaku from up ahead.

"Ah, w-wait for us!" yelled Hanataro as he and Neliel ran to catch up.

---

The cheerful sound of birds chirping was the first thing Isane heard when she woke up. She opened her eyes to see a bright blue sky above and the sunlight coming through the leaves of the surrounding trees. For a moment, she couldn't remember where she was. Lying on the ground, she wondered how far everyone had gotten before they noticed her disappearance. "I bet they haven't noticed that I'm missing yet." Her stomach's rumbling made her situation ever clearer to her; she had to find some food, since she hadn't eaten anything in the past day. Stiffly, she got to her feet and brushed off her dress before realizing that she hadn't a clue where she was or which way she had to go. "Well, it's still morning… that means the sun is still in the East, so I think West is that way." She started walking, glad it was at least good weather.

---

"Hey, is that… uh… the other Shinigami?" said Grimmjow, pointing into the distance.

Aizen looked. "Indeed, it would appear that Isane fuku-taicho has caught up."

Grimmjow, Aizen, and Ichigo had given up on keeping up with Mayuri a few hours after Isane's collapse. The blue haired Espada had simply sat down in his tracks and cursed up a storm at the distant shadow of the wagon. The other two members came to realize that following Mayuri was pure madness. At first, Ichigo had been quite reluctant to stop, not wanting to admit that he had been defeated or that his enemies were right.

Aizen had been the first to notice the disappearance of their female companion, but said nothing of the matter; she meant nothing to him other than a small obstacle in his plans once they got back. Ichigo and Grimmjow had passed out before either of them had a chance to think of anything besides how tired they were.

Yet, there she was, walking in their direction in the valley below the grassy hill they stood atop of. Isane hadn't noticed them yet. The same thought flashed through both Grimmjow and Aizen's minds: Maybe they could get away and leave her on her own.

Clearly, Ichigo did not share their thoughts. "Hey! Isane!" Ichigo shouted and waved his arms in the air to signal the girl over. Hearing his call, Isane lifted her skirts a bit and ran the remaining distance up the hill.

Gasping, she reached the top, sank to her knees, and fought to catch her breath.

"You okay?" asked Ichigo, concern in his voice.

She nodded, panting heavily. "This…dress is…impossible…" She looked around, finding only the three men and the grassy hill they stood on. The 5th member of their team was nowhere in sight.

Grimmjow noticed her search and rolled his eyes. "We ditched that circus freak last night. I don't care if he dies. In fact, I hope he drove himself off a cliff! It'd serve him right!" He kicked the ground in frustration. "This is stupid," he added.

"The question is: what do we do now?" Aizen asked, but the other three knew it was rhetorical. The answer was obvious: find the nearest town and some food.

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_Thanks for reading! Please comment/review!_


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